College football teams all season have tried to slow down Marvin Harrison Jr. Few have actually done it. When Ohio State quarterback Kyle McCord has needed to make a throw, he looks first for No. 18.
At the college level, these are among the best players in the country to play football. Earning a college football scholarship is hard. Earning it at the Division I level is harder. Earning it at the Power Five level is among the best of the best.
The high school level? There's no doubt it's still a challenge, particularly at larger high schools. But there is still a sizable gap between being a starter in high school and being a starter at any college.
Now, if Power Five players are having a hard time slowing down McCord-to-Harrison, imagine how high school players must have felt. Because the current Ohio State quarterback and wide receiver didn't just arrive in Columbus and meet each other for the first time. They weren't even at rival schools. They both played for the same high school, in the same graduating class. And from sophomore year until graduation, it was McCord-to-Harrison.
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And just as they are now in college, they were just as unstoppable back in high school.
Kyle McCord, Marvin Harrison Jr. high school
McCord and Harrison both attended the same high school: St. Joseph's Prep, a private, Catholic preparatory school in Philadelphia.
St. Joseph's Prep draws in student-athletes around the Philadelphia and New Jersey area, which is how it has become a football powerhouse in the state of Pennsylvania. Since the 6A classification was formed in 2016, St. Joseph's Prep has won five of the seven total titles, and lost in the other two state championship games.
McCord and Harrison first began to play together as sophomores. Harrison began his high school career at La Salle College, where he racked up 20 receptions for 254 yards and scored five touchdowns as a freshman, according to PennLive, but opted to transfer to play at St. Joseph's Prep as a sophomore. At the time, his biggest offer was from Syracuse, his dad's alma mater. McCord had already been at St. Joseph's Prep, but earned the starting job as a sophomore.
And when Harrison arrived at St. Joseph's Prep, he wasn't the daunting size he is now at Ohio State. Per PennLive, he was only around 6-foot, 6-1, according to St. Joseph's Prep offensive coordinator Tom Sugden. But after he arrived, he quickly began rising in height and worked on bulking up.
That first year, McCord and Harrison began to develop their relationship together. The Hawks won their second state championship in Class 6A that season, beating Harrisburg 40-20. Not long after, McCord committed to Ohio State.
According to Cleveland.com, McCord had been highly sought-after by Michigan and Clemson, but Ryan Day's pursuit of McCord wound up convincing him to come to Columbus, committing in April 2019. In late October 2019, Harrison followed his teammate in committing to the Buckeyes.
"I was so excited I can't even explain it," McCord said at the time of Harrison committing to Ohio State, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer. "Just knowing we have a bunch of more years together after high school. Not too many kids get to say that about their receiver.
"He knew I wanted him to Columbus really bad," McCord continued. "Even before I committed, we talked about going to the same school. I wanted him to go where it was best for him, but I'm extremely excited it's the same school I'm going to."
From high school to college... what a journey it's been for @OhioStateFB's Kyle McCord and Marvin Harrison Jr. ❤️🏈 pic.twitter.com/26OMtzg9mX
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) November 21, 2023
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Harrison described his relationship with McCord as ahead of other quarterback-receiver duos, and said McCord's commitment had an impact on him making the choice to go to Ohio State.
"Me and Kyle have a great relationship on and off the field," Harrison said, per the Philadelphia Inquirer. "You see a lot of quarterbacks and receivers that have a great relationship on the field. But it's off the field where me and Kyle separate" from other duos.
The next year, McCord and Harrison again comprised a dynamic duo, but due to an injury, McCord was unable to play in the state championship game against Central Dauphin. Instead, it was wide receiver and backup quarterback Malik Cooper throwing passes to Harrison en route to a second straight state title, winning 35-13. Harrison still led the game in receptions and receiving yards at three catches for 48 yards, including an impressive, finger-tip grab and run for a 34-yard touchdown.
Marvin Harrison with the impressive 34-yard touchdown reception. It’s now 21-0 @SJPrep_Football pic.twitter.com/jcj31DoUJs
— Edward Sutelan (@EdwardSutelan) December 7, 2019
Reflecting on another season with Harrison, McCord praised how far along the two had come in their time together. He told PennLive that after drives, he and Harrison would huddle together to break down the defenses and evaluate what needed to happen to get the offense clicking.
"It took a little while to get that chemistry going, but I think as soon as we clicked, I think we really helped each other grow. And he's one of the very few receivers that I've ever played with that thinks like a quarterback," McCord told PennLive. "He's so far advanced mentally and I think physically he's catching up now. He looks the part definitely and the last few games we really needed to rely on him to go and make some big-time catches."
The third year together was much the same as the previous two. McCord and Harrison lit up the regular season and went to another state title game, where for the third straight year, it was St. Joseph's Prep coming out on top, this time against Central York 62-13.
With both McCord and Harrison on the field together for the final time (until Columbus), the offense was fully clicking. McCord finished the game with 337 passing yards and four touchdowns, including two to Harrison, who caught three receptions for 73 yards.
Here’s the touchdown, from @PaFootballNews https://t.co/YZK63vf0h8
— Edward Sutelan (@EdwardSutelan) November 29, 2020
“That’s practice. Me and Kyle take a bunch of reps in practice and try to be perfect. I’m glad to see it come to this game," Harrison told PennLive. "This is a goal at the beginning of the season. I wouldn’t say it gets easier but experience definitely helps here.”
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How was high school for McCord and Harrison? Well, to start, that's three state championships in three years. McCord also set city of Philadelphia and Philadelphia Catholic League records in career passing yards (6,887) and touchdown passes (88), while Harrison set records with 2,625 receiving yards and 37 touchdowns, which came on 144 receptions.
By the time they left, both were ranked among the top recruits in the 2021 class. McCord was slightly ahead overall, rated as a five-star QB, ranking as the No. 28 overall prospect, No. 6 quarterback and No. 2 Pennsylvania prospect, per 247Sports Composite Rankings. Harrison was rated by the service as a four-star wide receiver, coming in at No. 97 overall, No. 14 among wide receivers and No. 5 in the state.
